St. Mary’s student awarded $100,000 scholarship

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This article was published 22/05/2018 (2705 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A student leader in gender equality and technology studies at St. Mary’s Academy will be heading to university this fall with one of the country’s most prestigious scholarships.

Gillian Besko, 18, is one of 50 Canadian high school graduates to receive the $100,000 Schulich Leader Scholarship and will be attending the University of Alberta to study engineering this fall.

Besko, who was nominated by her school for the award, said being selected for the scholarship out of a pool of 1,400 applicants was a surreal experience.

“It’s really amazing and I feel very honoured,” Besko said.

The Schulich Leader Scholarship was founded in 2012 and provides 50 undergraduate scholarships each year to students pursuing studies in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics.

Besko, while undecided on her precise area of study, said she is interested in the fields of artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, and aerospace and wants to explore how new technology can support law enforcement and social causes.

Of note, Besko hopes to dive into the world of artificial intelligence and machine learning to find ways to combat extremist groups that use social media for recruitment and fear mongering.

“I think there’s a long way to go with that and I’m really interested in expanding on that because that’s a really big part of their tactics and without that they’d be crippled,” Besko said.

The Grade 12 student said she’s always been drawn to technology and engineering, due in part to her passion for constant learning, but also the opportunity to be involved in creating novel solutions to pressing issues.

“I want to do something where I’m pushing the boundaries of what people know and understand,” Besko said. “I think that nano-tech, aerospace, and AI are all fields where that is really prominent right now.”

The Schulich Leader Scholarship, while focused on academics and career aspirations, also recognizes entrepreneurial spirit, leadership, and drive.

During her time at St. Mary’s, Besko co-founded a club dedicated to raising awareness of feminism and gender equality, called Step Forward. The goal of the club was to educate students on gender inequality and promote actions to close the gap, she said.

“For me especially, one of my big passions is girls in STEM and tech. So that assumption, that being in an all-girls school, girls are feeling empowered is not necessarily valid,” Besko said, adding that women are under represented in the field and discrepancy in wage between genders is not uncommon.

“We felt like we needed to prepare people for when they step out of the school and see that there is a lot of disparity that you’re sheltered from when you’re in an all girls school.”  

Michelle Klus, principal at St. Mary’s, said Besko has always been one to challenge things and go further, adding that when SMA didn’t offer a computer coding program, Besko went ahead and taught herself the language.

Each year, high schools are only allowed to nominate one student for the scholarship, and Klus said Besko was a perfect candidate.

“It wasn’t even a bat of an eyelash with Gillian,” Klus said. “She is one of the most creative, innovative students I’ve ever had.

“We’re incredibly proud of her.”